WIA Marketplace Woodworkers

Although the class sessions are sold out, the Exhibitors’ Marketplace at the Woodworking in America conference is our biggest yet , with more than 70 vendors. Editor Christopher Schwarz said the Marketplace is shaping up to be the largest woodworking tool show he’s ever seen other than AWFS and IWF.

Although the classes at the conference are full, the sessions aren’t the only place to receive instruction or to meet your favorite woodworking celebrities. Roy Underhill and Frank Klausz, along with our other presenters, will most likely swing through the Marketplace during the day. And we have a slew of other woodworking celebrities who will be there all day , performing woodworking demonstrations and meeting fellow woodworkers like you.

Thomas J. MacDonaldTommy MacDonald is the host of the new WGBH woodworking show “Rough Cut , Woodworking with Tommy Mac.” The show follows Tommy as he travels throughout historic New England to gain inspiration for his projects and to meet with other professional woodworkers. He then returns to his workshop to demonstrate the steps and woodworking techniques to build the projects.

At the WIA Marketplace, Tommy will be there to talk about the show and to meet woodworkers like you. Plus, there will be an exclusive surprise for Marketplace attendees that you won’t want to miss.

Rob CosmanYou’ll find Rob Cosman at the Woodcraft booth in the Marketplace. There he’ll be demonstrating many hand-tool skills (including hand-cut dovetails) as well as answering your woodworking questions. Here’s a brief bio of Rob in his own words:

“I have been working wood since my early childhood. My father was an industrial arts teacher turned carpenter, so woodworking was definitely in my blood.

“During my early years of professional furniture building, I worked hard to master the art of dovetailing. As a student and teaching assistant at BYU, I used my access to the woodshop to practice cutting a row of dovetails each morning before class. Once I mastered the process my next quest was speed. I had the incredible opportunity to spend some time with masters like Tage Frid and Alan Peters. Their input to my career was both priceless and inspiring. It is because of this I now feel it both an honor and a duty to pass on what I know and help keep the tradition alive.” (excerpted from “Hand-cut Dovetails,” by Rob Cosman)

Reto OdermattAlso at the Woodcraft booth will be professional woodcarver Reto Odermatt. He’ll be demonstrating carving techniques and showing Swiss-made Pfeil carving tools. Besides his superb woodcarving, Reto also makes ice and snow sculptures. You can see some of his work on his web site. His site is in German, but it is pretty easy to navigate. On the left menu bar there is a group of three links titled “holzdesign“, “eisskulturen” and “grabmale” that will display the image galleries of his work.

Don WeberIf you’ve ever visited the Marketplace at a past WIA conference, you know it’s hard to miss Don Weber. His large foot-powered pole lathe is a curious sight as he makes turnings out of green (unseasoned) wood. Don is a bodger, meaning he creates chair parts using the traditional tools and skills of the High Wycombe area of England.